Monday, April 26, 2010

Last Sunday at class, we were having some fun with Wujifa, and exploring some of the biproducts of training. Now, in our school we really focus on the Roots of the system, and when the flowers and fruits show up we simply appreciate them and move on.

We have a little story in Wujifa called "Driving to Disneyland". Following any intention is like following the intention to drive down to Disneyland. What's important is staying on the road. Biproducts that come up are like the signs on the road. When you see the signs that say "658 miles to Disneyland" or "256 miles to Disneyland", you may get excited, but you don't stop and set up camp around the sign and have your vacation there. You keep on driving.

One of the biproducts which we notice is increased balance, structure, and physical strength. One place where this is evident is in one-legged squats.

Again, this is just kind of a fun way to see some of the balance and structure that can be developed by practicing Wujifa.

Another Fun thing we play around with is the "zero inch punch", which is simply what it sounds like. It's a way of using your body to generate power over very short distances. I am by no means a pro at this one. In fact, I got so nervous in front of a camera thinking people were going to see it that I got the shakes. After I calmed down a little bit, we made this video:

Some of the punches are pretty decent, but there's a lot of work for me left to do too. I'm really excited about continuing to train and developing some real skill, which I will accomplish by really developing the roots of my practice.

It's cool, I watched the movie "The Drunken Master" the other day, and "So Hi", Jacky Chan's master, had him really focus on doing the basic exercises of the style for a long time before he got to anything that looked like "kung fu". Then, when he finally had to fight, he was amazing! The lesson is that focus on the basics is very important, and builds the foundation for real skill. Truly one of our beliefs in Wujifa!

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About Me

I'm currently studying to get my Ph.D. in somatic psychology at the Santa Barbara Graduate Institute. My undergraduate work was at the University of Michigan. I study and teach a martial art/meditation called Wujifa.